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“Our Vision is to Make cPanel Synonymous with Hosting”-Mario Rodriguez, cPanel

There is one fact that most people who’ve been working with hosting centric control panels since the Cobalt RaQs, early days of Ensim, Plesk, etc. will unanimously testify to- cPanel is a clear winner when it comes to providing graphical interface and automation tools designed to simplify the process of hosting a web site. And what makes it better is the fact that it’s very flexible for experienced administrators and newbies alike. Very recently, cPanel unveiled cPanel & WHM 11.36 to Current tier. So we reached out to Mr. Mario Rodriguez, Strategic Partner Manager, cPanel for an interview regarding the same and he obliged. So without much ado, over to him. But before, take a tour to the company’s office and have a look at the vibrant environment and employees who make it the most popular and commercially-available control panel software in the world.

Our vision is to make cPanel universally synonymous with dependable hosting and server automation solutions. The company goals are to continue growth, diversity revenue, improve operational efficiency and nurture and improve the hosting industry.

– Mr. Mario Rodriguez, Strategic Partner Manager, cPanel.

Q : What is your name and role with cPanel? How long have you been in that role?

A : Mario Rodriguez. I am the Strategic Partner Manager here at cPanel, and my primary focus is to ensure our partners are empowered with everything they need to succeed in their day-to-day functions.

Q : For those who don’t know what cPanel is, can you please brief it a bit?

A: cPanel makes it fast and easy for website owners and hosting providers to set-up and manage all aspects of their hosting business; create and manage email accounts, create custom mailing lists, enhance security, manage files and pages on your website, manage your domains and much more. Many processes can be done in only 60-90 seconds, which you can see here.

Q: What would you say makes cPanel better than any other paid or free control panel out there?

A: cPanel is considered the standard in dependable web hosting software, and most of that success we attribute to our people. We hire the most talented people and assemble trustworthy teams of developers and Quality Assurance folks. We back our products and partners with 24-7-365 technical support (rated at 9.5), and offer an active Forum, new Feature Request Program, discounted monthly licensing, snapshot billing, free migrations from other control panels, and of course, high customer demand.

Q : Very recently cPanel Unveiled cPanel & WHM 11.36. Considering the fact that cPanel & WHM 11.34 was unveiled just a few months back, what are the key features of 11.36 that set it apart from the 11.34?

A: cPanel & WHM 11.36 is on average, 30% faster than ever, and offers more reliable and stable installation. We have made some core architectural changes to the software that has made this possible. For more information, you can visit here.

Q: This question is regarding your partnership with CloudLinux. Many of the management features that CloudLinux brought to the table could just as well have been integrated in cPanel itself. Why doesn’t cPanel just do this CloudLinux “stuff” themselves “in house” and “built in” to cPanel?

A: cPanel & WHM does not have similar features to CloudLinux, and controlling CPU and Memory is a kernel level activity that requires a special expertise. CloudLinux focuses on this core expertise and delivers an operating system that provides a number of features that would fall outside of cPanel’s scope of development.

Q : What’s your favorite cPanel feature?

A: There are many, including our new Android and iPhone apps for the newly improved WebDisk. Have you tried it? Essentially it’s your own “dropbox”.

Q: How does cPanel use social media to communicate with its customers? Is it a major part of cPanel’s online marketing?

A: cPanel uses Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn as well as our cPanel Forum, to listen, learn & engage. We listen to see what conversations are happening and engage to either offer assistance or point the user to where helpful information can be found. Often times, we are able to connect social media users over to our Forum where we have over 135,000 community members engaged in almost any cPanel & WHM topic you could imagine. Social media plays an important role in communicating with our Partners and offering unparalleled customer support. In fact, I presented a session on this at our most recent cPanel Conference.

Q : As of now, 20 percent of the world’s websites run on cPanel-equipped servers and it has the single largest footprint in the hosting business of any organization. What plans do you have in store for 2013?

A: Our vision is to make cPanel universally synonymous with dependable hosting and server automation solutions. The company goals are to continue growth, diversify revenue, improve operational efficiency and nurture and improve the hosting industry. Our VP of Operations, Aaron Phillips, posted a great blog post recapping 2012 and laying out the vision for 2013. If you haven’t seen it, check it out .

Q: cPanel Conference 2012 , held in Houston, Texas was a big success. What value do you expect to derive from cPanel Conference 2013?

A: I can’t divulge too much at this time. However, everyone that’s attended a cPanel Conference knows we push the limits and strive to deliver more interesting learning venues and networking opportunities each year. In 2013 we’re going over the top – and that’s all I can say at this time. For more, jump over to www.conference.cpanel.net and subscribe for updates. #NOLA #YOLO

Q: Wildcard Question – Microsoft, Linux and Mac OS. Your favourite?

A: As you may be able to tell from my profile on LinkedIn , Apple fanboy here 🙂

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